Through the Looking-Glass

Africa » Ethiopia » Benishangul-Gumuz Region » Asosa
December 25th 2008

Published: January 3rd 2009

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Al and Sara

The Gang of Four

Enjoying African sun before we enter the arctic zone..

Don't Panic....ok, go on then P-A-N-I-C

Our trip home to the UK at Christmas seemed like it was going smoothly and by the numbers. We had said goodbye to our friends, taken various orders for bits and pieces unavialable to people in Assosa, packed up the house, left money for bills and paid our seratanyas (Marta and Mulatu). All we needed now was our ticket from Ethiopian Airlines, booked 3 weeks prior through VSO in Addis.

It got to the Wednesday, we were due to fly on Saturday to Addis and back to the UK (via Dubai) on Monday. I had finished my 5 day Cisco training course and we thought we best ask VSO if they could forward us the ticket now. All was bound to be OK given the amount of time the travel agents and VSO had been given...

...er

...uhm

We finally received a breathless email (mobile network not firing on all cylinders) saying that the travel agents had got the date wrong and booked us on the flight departing in, oh, about 10 minutes and that Saturday's flight was now fully booked and that Assosa airport would close on Sunday for

Sara at Dubai

Munkey tries to get a broadband wireless connection

3 months for asphalting of the runway.

But don't worry. The travel agents could sort it out.

Right.

We had an 18,000 birr investment in 2 return flights to London, departing Monday from Addis. It was Thursday, we were 700km away, Saturday's flight was the last one out of Assosa for 3 months and we were not on it. We were 2 days away from Addis by car but we had no car.

To cut a long and rather painful story short my friendly Bureau head without batting an eyelid offered us the use of his car and driver to take us to Addis, to depart whenever we wanted!

In between my counterpart and friend Debebe had put in a heroic effort calling in favours with his buddies at Ethiopian Airways, calling Addis, the travel agent, Jimma and Assosa airports. I even went down in person to the Assosa office of Ethiopian Airways to essentially beg for 2 seats.

Ultimately it all hung on whether the President needed his 2 VIP seats or not that had been automatically reserved for him. And ultimately he did.

Mr Sulu. Addis Ababa. Warp Factor 9

Beans on Toast (with cheese)

Food of the Gods

So at 4.30am on Saturday our driver and car turned up and off we set on what we expected to be a 2 day journey to Addis, with an overnight stop in Ambo (home of good fizzy water) and a small hop onwards Sunday morning to Addis itself.

In fact the roads have improved significantly since our journey from Addis -> Assosa in February. Much more of the road is now tarmac and our driver made great time, very safely I would add and we got into Addis in time for the 6pm ko of Arsenal vs Wigan!! In fact we arrived only an hour or so after the aeroplane.

Addis was cool for a couple of days. Caught up with Paul, Courtney (who are building the hospital in Kamashi Zone) and the other VSOs and did a little last minute shopping for Xmas pressies.

Monday afternoon we headed off to the airport thanks to a lift from Captain B with Paul and Courtney, said goodbye and waited for Emirates flight to Dubai to board. When the time came it was "wow" look at the size of that big boy! A massive Airbus stood waiting for us

Like Father

Cheers!

in stark contrast to the little Fokker 50 paper aeroplanes we had become so used to!

Very comfortable with lots of space we settled down to enjoy the 4 hour flight to Dubai (the plane had originated in Uganda). Sara tried a glass of decent red Shiraz with a broad grin and I watched HellBoy 2 on the in-flight entertainment. We were happy as a pair of fleas in a fat boy's futon...

I'm a volunteer - get me out of here!

Dubai was a shock to the system. Having spent 10 months as a volunteer in one of the remote, emerging regions of Ethiopia to arrive in a centre of opulence surrounded by wealth and wealthy people on flight stopovers we were a bit at sixes and sevens.

I stared slack-jawed at the diamond-studded, solid gold mobile phones on offer and the adverts for golfing "enclaves" - segregated housing areas surrounding a golf course (presumably raised up arteficially from the desert?). Daddy was just off taking Junior for 6 holes before supper. Hell, it looked like something out of the Stepford Wives!

We looked at each other horrified. Yikes! When's our connection?

White

Like Son

Cheers to you too!

Christmas

Eventually we boarded our flight back to the UK - this time a Boeing 737 that believe it or not had less space than the Airbus from Addis to Dubai! We had also fallen foul of not picking our seats and asking for extra legroom. Of course what happens is you get put with the other guys who need legroom which usually means they are 8 foot tall or fat as a house!

We ended up in the middle two seats of a row of 4 and I spent the entire journey in discomfort as a South African geezer to my left (who had boarded before me) sat with both arms nailed to the armrests (you must know them - the aeroplane armrest fascists?) and his elbow dug into my kidneys whenever I tried to get comfortable.

Sara snatched a few hours sleep - I failed miserably as usual - so by the time we arrived I was spaced out and a bit irritable (really?). We looked down and saw the familar grey of London and wondered how we would feel about being home.

After collecting our baggage we headed off to meet Marta (the

Happiness

Guinness, Taytos and Munster vs the All Blacks on video

VSO from Assosa who was not allowed to return in May) and couldn't believe it. The place is full of white people!

OK, Dubai airport is pretty multi-racial and the flight was a mixed bag but suddenly all we could see were pasty, chubby white people!?!

It may sound strange but you stop noticing people's skin colour when you are working in Assosa. There are about half a dozen white people in the entire town (3 volunteers and a few project consultants) so everyone you meet is black and after a while you forget the difference. It's not until kids stare and call after you that you remember you look different.

No doubt after 3 weeks in the UK it will be weird to go back to Assosa again, though to not look different and have kids stare and call at you in the UK will be somewhat a relief. Daft though it is, you can imagine in a small way what some celebrity feels like. Eyes always burning into you where ever you walk, following your every move.

Then again at least in Assosa it is positive attention. I can imagine how bad it would

Next land? New York!

Not a bad view to wake up to

feel like if the staring and calls were all negative. Imagine how some black people feel as minorities in part of the UK, particulalry years ago when people were less educated and less liberal...I think you would have to be brave to leave your house!

Hallelujah!

So we are home. How excited are we!

We can turn on the cold tap and drink the water. We can turn on the other tap and out comes hot water. WOW!

Hot showers, flushing toilets, washing machines, motorways, 24x7 electricity...

...and choice!

Tastes! Mmmmmmm......

BROADBAND!

Wow! The Internet goes THAT fast??? I'd forgotten...

Are we Human?

But still people complain. We are credit crunched out already.

It gets a chore to listen to tales of doom and gloom when you see people moaning when they have free education, free healthcare, safe drinking water, an effective police force, an effective legal system, social security, pensions, disability benefits, unemployment benefit, non-stop water, electricity and gas, tarmac roads, streetlighting, free and well-stocked libraries, free museums.

Not to mention human rights, rights for women, very low chances of death in child birth and a high

What's this white stuff?

Er, that's called SNOW

chance of kids living past 5 years old.

But I guess it is all relative?

Or are we Dancer(s)?

Plus we have great TV over here. General doom and gloom lifted for 10 minutes while people discussed if some 12 year old kid from Ireland was better than some boyband from Peckham or a proper talented singer on X-factor. Or if Rachel was better than Tom on Strictly Come Dancing...

I have to say I watched the X-Factor final and it WAS great TV. Normally I'd hate it but, boy, it was good. And the talented one, won!

Anyway, enough of brit-bashing, after all these people are my "tribe" (I have been asked how many tribes there are in England...) and you would go mad if you didn't just take the blue pill again and submit to it all.

Hot and Cold

So what have we been doing?

A mammoth round the folks in 21 days!

I left London for Bristol, flew to Shannon, down to Kilbaha, back to Limerick, back to Kilbaha. Back to Limerick, over to Gatwick, off to Hastings, quick trip to Eastbourne, then Chelmsford, Bristol again, Cheltenham,

Sara with a thirst on

Ready for the big match

then Wells, back to Bristol and finally we will depart once more from Gatwick...Phew!

And Yes it was COLD! We went from 33 degrees in Assosa to 3 degrees in London. When the pilot announced it we thought he had missed out a zero...

Many many good bits, which I will have to update on in detail later as believe it or not my hands are so cold I can hardly type any more.

OK, quick highlights

Will have to wrack my brain and dig deep. Done so much eating and drinking it's hard to recall everything...

- Munster vs Clermont Avergne at the new Thomand Park

- Dee's 60th birthday party at rugby club in Limerick

- X-Factor final in front of TV and real fire

- First trip to a supermarket (Morrisons in Hartcliffe) and my mouth salivating as I stared at the deli counter. I was like a rabbit in the headlights 😊

- First pint of real ale

- Pint of the black stuff at Crotty's in Ennis

- Solstice with Chris & Sue, Kate & Kate

- Seeing our godson at Rob and

Changed a bit!

Last time there was mud banks and a terrace

Kays

- Christmas at my sisters with Ollie, Dad and John playing Guitar Hero

- First curry (Indian Food Centre) with Stu & Jo

...the list continues but it will have to continue in the next blog...

Hope you guys all had a great one too and hope 2009 is a great year for all. We are shortly back to Ethiopia for our second Christmas. In the Ethiopian calendar it takes place on 7th January 😊

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